Night cream can delay ageing!

We all fall prey to lavish advertising of beauty products that claim to make you look younger. But, whether these products are actually useful or not is something we all need to know. One such product is a night cream.

After keeping a safe distance from all such beauty products for decades, I started my beauty regime with a day and a night cream, thanks to the sudden presence of pores on my face. But one thing that confused me always was, if we really need a special ‘night cream’ or is it just a result of growing market for extravagant beauty products? Contrary to what I thought, experts say, IT IS IMPORTANT!

“Night Care is about rejuvenating your skin and reversing the damage done to it during the day. In other words, if Day Care is about defence, Night Care is about the attack,” says Dr. Jamuna Pai, the celebrity beauty expert.

Why is nighttime so important?

“Since our skin is not exposed to the environment at night, the focus should be on providing hydration and nourishment to the skin cells to help keep our skin rejuvenated and fresh. In addition, the skin also needs a serious boost to its metabolism and this can be achieved with a night cream that contains effective performance ingredients. Retinol is one such ingredient because it penetrates deep into the dermis and evokes stimulation right where collagen fibers are created. It is considered to be one of the most miraculous ingredients for skin smoothing, reducing lines and wrinkles and reducing pore size,” says Dr. Ramanjit Singh, Dermatologist, Medanta.

Aging, no matter how much you avoid paying attention, scares all of us. A simple skincare routine with few beauty products is a must to avoid these ageing signs. Night cream is one such important product. To understand this further, we first need to understand how our skin behaves while we are asleep!

Ahh! Now we know that all the efforts we did before hitting the bed, did not go in vain. But another question that breaks out here is – do all skin types need a night cream regime?

Experts say that all skin types need a night cream to replenish the damages done to the skin during the day time. “A Night cream hydrates and moisturises dry skin, it balances the oil and prevents acne in oily skin. And in balanced skin it maintains suppleness. Generally, for all skin types, the role of a night cream is to rejuvenate and repair,” says Dr Kalpana Sarangi, Dermato-cosmetologist, Nanavati Super Speciality Hospital.

So, there is no escape!
You are asleep, but your skin is not!

The right age to start your regime with night cream

25 is the new 35! If you think twenties are very early to realize that your skin needs care, you are wrong. With the worsening environmental conditions around us, the early you start, the longer you delay the onset of ageing.

“While the difference between the cell turnover rate in your teens to the time you are in your fifties is large,there are still ways you can speed up the turnover rate as you age. You can start either when or before you see the first signs of fine lines, dryness of the skin, mild pigmentation patches or Sun damage/photoaging,” recommends Dr. Jamuna Pai.

Moisturising is something that automatically becomes a part of a woman’s routine, but most of us ignore the most important hours of the day. Even while we are asleep for 7-8 hours, our skin needs to be taken care of. Because of the evaporation process during the nighttime, our skin needs uninterrupted nourishment and thus, night creams come for rescue.

Expert tip: Since these creams can cause dryness of the skin, it is appropriate to lather a rich moisturising cream on top of the night cream.

Is it important for men too?

Yes, of course! Skin is the largest organ of the body and like all other organs needs to be looked after. It is not make-up that men have to shy away from. “Though, there is a difference in the skin thickness and texture; as compared to women, men traditionally spend less time caring for their skin, but their skin needs should not be ignored. The primary need of the skin being the same, the ingredients of the skin care products do not differ,” says Dr. Jamuna Pai.